For All It's Worth

The Messiah in the Passover , Edited by Darrell Bock and Mitch Glaser Why should Christians celebrate and remember the Passover?   This is a striking question that needs to be understood as well as the historical and theological context of the Passover.   However obscure we sometimes view the Old Testament, there is some significant reasons why we should reach back and study the Passover.   Mitch Glaser in the Introduction states, “When Christians celebrate the Passover, they grow in their understanding of the Old Testament, affirm the Jewishness of the Gospel, deepen our understanding of the Lord’s Supper, and build community with fellow Christians…” (20).   This book is answer to why celebrate the Passover but even more importantly an answer to what the Passover is and what it signifies to us today.   The various contributors of this book, Messiah in the Passover, bring a wealth of ministry experience in relating the Jewishness of both Jesus and the Old Testament to

“Since Brother Martin was so troubled by his sin and unworthiness, Staupitz first advised that he seek forgiveness in the sacrament of penance.   Going to confession helped Luther, but only to a point.   Luther began to confess his sins frequently, often on a daily basis, and sometimes in great detail.   He analyzed every sin, every motive, every circumstance, scrupulously.   His fellow priests grew tired of hearing his obsessive confessions.   Some began to avoid him on purpose.   Johann van Staupitz, a very patient man, exploded one day: “Look here”, he said to Luther, “if you expect Christ to forgive you, come in with something to forgive – patricide, blasphemy, adultery – instead of all these small faults.”   But this advice was useless to Luther.   His anxiety was not over the magnitude of his sins, or their sheer number, but over whether they had been correctly confessed.   What about unrecognized sins?   Or forgotten sins?   What about his motives, especially?   After all, a

Interpreting the Wisdom Books: An Exegetical Handbook by Edward Custis Among the many wonderful books on the OT wisdom literature, this fine new book helps the reader interpret, exegete, and apply God’s Word to his people in succinct and helpful way.  The book is laid out nicely with bolded words that emphasize necessary themes in the study of the wisdom books and short chapters that get to the point of the biblical books.  This series of exegetical handbooks is a great treasure for students and pastors because it synthesizes much of the academic work on a biblical book into digestable portions helpful  for preaching and teaching. The opening chapter on the wisdom books brings out a helpful grid for understanding wisdom literature.  Custis writes, “Biblical wisdom, in contrast to Israel’s neighbors, reflects “Yahwistic theology” through its regular use of terms like “fear of the Lord,” its affirmation of God’s providence, and its recognition that wisdom ultimatel

So Close to Amazing by KariAnne Wood With a humorous bent and an infectiously creative attitude, DIY expert and writer KariAnne Wood comes to her new book, So Close to Amazing , with a keen sense of purpose.  The great thing about the book is KariAnne doesn't have it all figured out and yet she is able to laugh at her foibles and mess-ups, with the grace to keep moving on toward another goal.  Early on in the book she writes, "I'm the one who brings slice and bake cookies to a potluck.  Not baked, of course.  Only sliced....That's me - following a dream without much of a plan." Something extraordinary happens in the midst of the ordinary, at least for the Wood family.  We find in the book a vision of taking over a small town pharmacy, moving from Texas all the way to small town Kentucky with her children.  The picturesque house turns into a swirling place to raise a family, and to engage in DIY projects while seeking to run a business.  Remodeling an old

A Force So Swift: Mao, Truman, and the Birth of Modern China, 1949 by Kevin Peraino The rise of modern China is due to many factors, not least of which was a tumult going on in the country itself, with respect to its leaders.  Warring factions, two powerful leaders, and the threat of war were all factors that led to the China we see today.  Kevin Peraino in his new book, A Force So Swift, draws on the history of China with a sharp focus on Mao and his rise, Truman and his coming to serve as President and the harrowing decisions he had to make in the face of great danger. One of the more fascinating parts of the book for me was the focus on Madame Chiang Kai-Shek.  As the wife of Kai-Shek, she was relentless is pursuing the United States as an ally to help the people of China and her husband. Brazen, not afraid of political wrangling and pulling up a seat at the table of men.  Kevin writes, "She told Chiang that she had been busily lobbying Americans from "all walks

Gospel Fluency Handbook by Jeff Vanderstelt and Ben Connelly Two pastors get together to write a book about a much needed topic, and what happens is a stunning display of God's grace for all to view.  Pastors Jeff Vanderstelt and Ben Connelly, part of the Soma Family of churches have put together a resource to guide people from unbelief to belief by resting on the central concept of the gospel.  Yet, this book although packing a punch theologically is very practical in all the ways someone new to the church would have so many questions that need good answers.  We all at times have an unwilling heart that wants to believe God's word at times and at others to go the road of the religion of me.  There are aspects of everyone's life that we don't believe God.  The authors writes, "There are spaces where we don't trust his word and don't believe that what he accomplished in Jesus Christ is enough to deal with our past or what we are facing in this mom

Vindicating the Vixens: Revisiting Sexualized, Vilified, and Marginalized Women of the Bible , Edited by Sandra Glahn For quite a long and drawn out title, this book really packs a punch.   The contributors to this volume span a wide range from seminary professors to ministry and pastoral leaders, to bloggers and writers.   The book’s title Vindicating the Vixens, gives us a glimpse at the main thrust of the message, we have simply not understood the women of the bible and recapturing and honoring their place in the biblical record helps us see the multi-faceted nature of their lives.   The story of Ruth captures the imagination and focus of its readers with an unparalleled story of redemption.   Many times we hone in on the way that Boaz takes Ruth under his wings and marries her amidst the peculiar customs of the time.   Yet, as Marnie Legaspi points out, Ruth is committed to her mother-in-law but also to great sacrifice.   Marnie points out some loyalties in t

Frame by Frame: Notes on John Frame’s Systematic Theology: An Introduction Chapter 1: What is Theology Theology is replete with definitions, anything from justification to Christ’s second coming.  Definitions are rarely found in scripture of theology or theological concepts.  We grapple with Scripture and this wrestling in human form are less than adequate to describe the ways the Bible deals with language, narratives, and teaching. Theologians and scholars of the Bible come up with various definitions.  Frame mentions effectual calling “God’s sovereign summons that actually draws a person into union with Christ.” (3)  But calling also has referent points to “name giving, invitation, request for someone’s attention.”  The point here is that one definition is simply too narrow to encompass all that Scripture states about a particular theological concept.  Our theological definitions must be measured by Scripture, they must not go beyond what Scripture says or s